Changing Times in the Mountains: Marie Halbert King and the National Youth Administration in Western North Carolina

CHANGING TIMES IN THE MOUNTAINS: MARIE HALBERT KING AND THE NATIONAL YOUTH ADMINISTRATION IN WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA by Louis D. Silveri When Marie Halbert King concluded her eight years as a supervisor with the New Deal's National Youth Administration (NYA) in 1943, the lives of many young mountain people of western North Carolina had changed significantly. Thirty years after she finished her work with the NYA Mrs. King reminisced about its programs, the people it helped, and the impact the whole experience had on herself. Intelligent , resourceful, and sensitive, she became a dedicated worker in this new field of endeavor for her and the government. Born in Kensington, Kansas in 1893 Marie Halbert moved with her father to Asheville in 1920. She had studied music in Lincoln, Nebraska and in Kansas City. In Asheville she became interested in creative writing and poetry, taking courses at the Asheville Normal School. She worked for a short time with the Piedmont Lyceum Bureau before her marriage in 1922. The rest of the decade was spent in Florida where Mr. King was employed, but they came back to Asheville in 1930 to weather the depression years. By executive order ofJune 26, 1935 President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the NYA with initial funding of $50 million. The previous month government statistics showed that almost 3 million 16-24 year olds were on relief, the great majority having no skills. In urban areas less than 50% of all youths on relief had gone beyond the 8th grade. In rural areas the figure was less than 25%. The NYA was to meet the needs of these young people through high school and college aid, part time work for out of school and out of work youth in families on relief, related training and constructive leisure time activities, vocational guidance and placement for unemployed youth, and a resident program. From the outset the administration of the program was to be decentralized, cooperation of state and local agencies interested in youth was to be sought, and there was to be room for experimentation. 1 Mrs. King got her position quite by chance. / had no political pull, and didn't even know the mayor's name. A friend came by one evening and told me to go to city hall tomorrow. A man from Raleigh was taking applications for National Youth work. So I went in and filled out an application 51 and waited. In December, 1935 I was offered the job and I accepted. I got paid $80 a month. That was quite a bit. It was in January, 1936 that I began to get out into the coves and hollows, along remote branch roads, up the hills and along the creeks of this mountain area. I began work with the official title of county supervisor. From Washington we were provided with a general outline setting forth certain objectives. The program was set up in a big way to meet the needs of the entire country. Washington couldn't possibly know the local needs along Jump Creek, Broad River, or Lower Hominy. It was left to the county supervisors, with guidance from the state staff and assistance from local officials, to initiate projects that would benefit the counties in a material way, and at the same time give the youth training and good work habits and specific skills. In 1937 our first two resident centers were organized, one for the girls and one for the boys. These were for the youth over the country who could not reach local projects or couldn't get the specialized training that was offered in the city. We had excellent trainingfor the boys in many different skills. We had a woodworking shop for training. Many of these mountain boys could swing an axe but needed training in the use of tools. They builtfurniture for schools and tax supported institutions. The girls, many coming from these remote hollows, were given special instruction in personal hygiene, nutrition, gardening, canning, and also something called home management. All residents received $20 a month. It wasn't long before Mrs. King became acquainted with the ways of mountain folk. It was a cold and rainy morning in...